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Business
Professionals Attend Annual Matchmaker Conference & Expo

Business professionals attended the 2008
Palm Beach Partners Matchmaker Conference & Expo held at the Palm Beach
County Convention Center on September 24. Deputy County Administrator Verdenia
Baker (pictured left) and other county officials also attended.

The annual event gives small business owners a chance to network
with South Florida’s leading corporations, government agencies and other
businesses. At the day-long conference, participants attended breakout sessions
with leading industry experts to learn about a variety of topics including
marketing, financing and Internet strategies.

Kevin
Johns, director of the Office of Economic Development, is coordinating with the
World Trade Center Palm Beach and the Embassy of Spain’s Department of
Investment to conduct an inbound Cordoba, Spain trade mission on Wednesday,
October 8.

Ten
companies from the food and ceramic sectors will be represented in the
delegation. The inbound mission is a follow-up to the Consulate General of
Spain’s familiarization tour of Palm Beach County that was held earlier this
year in May.

The
trade mission’s participating companies are interested in meeting with Palm
Beach County importers, distributors, wholesalers and retailers from the food
and ceramics sectors. All meetings will be held in West Palm
Beach.

Businesses
in the food and ceramics sectors which are interested in meeting with the
Spanish trade delegation should please call Barbara Fiedor at 561-644-9186 or bfiedor@wtcpalmbeach.com to set an
appointment.

Ed
Lowery, director of Palm Beach County’s Department of Housing and Community
Development, attended the Sept. 25 dedication of Villa Regina of West Palm
Beach, a new affordable housing development for low-income seniors. The
ceremony was held in the building’s new lobby.

The new facility is located at 2660 N. Haverhill Road in West Palm
Beach and will serve low-income residents ages 62 and older. Eligibility for
occupancy is established by the Department of Housing & Urban Development.

Palm Beach County partnered with Catholic Charities Diocese of
Palm Beach to develop the project and donated $2 million toward the
facility, which has been under construction for the past 18 months.

At the ceremony, Lowery said that he was pleased to partner with
the Diocese to address the great need of providing affordable, clean,
safe housing for the county’s elderly residents.

Daggerwing
Nature Center will host a special Halloween “Boo”ardwalk event on Friday,
October 31, from 7 to 9 p.m. on the boardwalk at Daggerwing Nature Center.

Parents
are invited to bring their costumed children and take a walk on the
family-friendly “Boo”ardwalk through a real swamp. Guests will take part in fun
Halloween activities and crafts and learn about some spooky creatures of the
night. If you attend, please bring a flashlight to see what creatures you can spot
in the swamp.

The
event is free and preregistration is not required. Bug spray is recommended.

Daggerwing
Nature Center is operated by the Palm Beach County Parks and Recreation
Department and is located in South County Regional Park at 11200 Park Access
Road, off Cain Boulevard between Glades Road and Yamato Road, in western Boca
Raton. For more information, visit www.pbcparks.com/nature.

The Palm Beach County Library System has
unveiled a new logo and tagline which focuses on the library customer’s
experience. The new tagline, “Dream.
Discover. Do.,” reflects changes in the library’s new environment.
It’s no longer just a place for books and quiet study, but also a community
location where people can meet to socialize with friends, attend programs,
access informational resources and check out the latest materials including
CDs, DVDs, audiobooks, online databases and new releases.

The new logo features a fun,
friendly typeface and a warm tropical color palette that is fresh and inviting.
These elements reflect the library’s warm, inviting atmosphere where people of
all ages can enjoy learning and experiencing new things.

Library Director John J.
Callahan III, said, “The library continues to change to meet the needs of the
community, but our goal remains to provide the best customer service to each of
our customers, to provide educational and entertaining experiences for
life-long learning and love of reading. We strive to make each experience an
enjoyable one.”

The library’s Web site,
pbclibrary.org, also sports a new look. Additional redesign will take place within
the coming months.